Despite cleanup efforts, research by a UF professor has found that oil residue still remains in the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
A team led by Thomas S. Bianchi, professor of geology and the Jon L. and Beverly A. Thompson Endowed Chair of Geological Sciences, found that oil residue from the 2010 spill is still present in the region, although previous research found otherwise.
Bianchi said the research team returned to the Gulf to compare present and 2010 water samples and examine the fluorescent properties of molecules.
“Right after the spill, there were lots of fluorescent measurement(s) taken by people because it was the quickest way to see what was out there,” he said.
While some of the oil left behind was consumed by bacteria and/or vaporized into the atmosphere, Bianchi said other oil molecules have been decomposed and now remain as another type of carbon molecule that is not actually oil — which is why other studies didn’t find residue.
According to a press release, UF’s team, which was part of a larger group, was funded by a grant from BP’s Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative.
Ale Russian, a 20-year-old UF telecommunication junior, said UF’s research will help restore the beaches she used to visit.
“My family used to go to the beach but couldn’t go during the oil spill,” she said.
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 9/18/2014 under the headline "Effects of BP oil spill continue in Gulf despite cleanup efforts"]
